Museo Horne

A beautiful old church from the 14th century, which once functioned as a grain market.

The oldest and most celebrated bridge over the Arno, and the only Florentine bridge to survive World War II. The design is distinctive: it's a three-arched bridge supporting a parade of shops supporting another bridge. It dates to 1345 (hence Ponte Vecchio, "old bridge"), with earlier bridges being swept away by floods, rebuilt and swept away again. At street level it's a pedestrianised cobbled arch. It's lined by shops, which were butchers until Renaissance times then - in an insight as dramatic as the discovery of perspective in painting - they realised that goldsmiths' shops paid higher rents and didn't stink; so from then to this day it's just been overpriced jewellery shops and market stalls. Above these is the higher bridge, the Vasari Corridor, a private walkway added in 1565 so that the Medici Dukes could move between Palazzo Vecchio (Town Hall) and Palazzo Pitti (their blingy residence) without mixing with common folk. On the south bank, the Corridor nowadays continues as a gallery of the Uffizi, and there is sometimes talk of extending this over the bridge, or otherwise making the space accessible. Nothing's come of this so far, so the common folk will have to continue admiring the scene from street level.

Piazza della Signoria is the grand open space in front: not quite a square, as Palazzo Vecchio blocks out one corner. Sights here are the equestrian statue of Cosimo de Medici, the Fountain of Neptune, the statue of David, and Loggia dei Lanzi, an open arched gallery of Renaissance sculpture

Old city palace/city hall, adorned with fine art. The replica of Michelangelo's "David" is placed outside the main door in the original location of the statue, which is a symbol of the Comune of Florence. The site displays an important collection of Renaissance sculptures and paintings, including the Putto by Verrochio and the series of murals by Giorgio Vasari at the Salone dei Cinquecento (Hall of the Five Hundreds) - the hall which used to display the now lost Renaissance masterpiece, that is, the so-called Battaglia di Anghiari, by Leonardo da Vinci.

A beautiful church with great artwork, including a Trinity by Masaccio that is being restored as of April 2024 but can still be seen from the scaffold for an additional charge of €1.50 and a great series of frescoes by Ghirlandaio behind the altar. Also, the museum near the Chiostro Verde, outside the church to its left (follow the signs in the church), contains gently restored frescoes of Old Testament scenes by Paolo Uccello which are quite unusual in style and well worth seeing. Off of another cloister is the wonderful Spanish Chapel which is covered in huge, impressive 14th-century frescoes. Also don't miss the Cappella Strozzi di Mantova, up a flight of stairs at the end of the left transept, with dramatic frescoes of Heaven, Hell and Purgatory by Nardo di Cione. The gift shop is in the Sacristy, which also contains paintings and other artwork. Allotting 1 1/2-2 hours to see everything would be reasonable.

Outstanding fine art museum with Renaissance paintings and sculptures from classical antiquity. It's in a late 16th-century palazzo designed by Vasari, in two wings enclosing a long narrow courtyard, effectively a street, an innovation in its day. Originally the palazzo was magistrates' offices (hence "Uffizi") and state archives; then it came to house the Medici's vast art collection. However, one collections seems to have crossed purposes: the massive number of standardized portraits, placed in the hallway, seem to have been an ID system for identifying important foreigners when they came to town. The artworks are on the first and second floors, they keep the lifts well hidden. Highlights include Birth of Venus by Boticelli, Dukes of Urbino by della Francesca, Medusa by Caravaggio, Venus of Urbino by Titian, Annunciation by da Vinci, Pope Leo X and family by Raphael, Velasquez' self-portrait, Rembrandt's final self-portrait, and many other big names. Allow three hours for a visit. Uffizi specialises in the Renaissance, so although later styles are represented, examples are few: you don't really come here for the 18th- to 20th-century material. The restaurant/cafè has a large balcony overlooking the main piazza with good views of the Palazzo Vecchio, and naturally their prices reflect the views.